Alternately supportable service tray



, March 31, 1959 R. c. BLACK ALTERNATELY SUPPORTABLE SERVICE TRAY Filed March 31, 1958 a m v. n N 4 e w: a N r MW M 1 x M ALTERNATELY SUPPORTABLE SERVICE TRAY Ralph C. Black, Indianapolis, Ind.

Application March 31, 1958, Serial No. 725,220 3 Claims. (Cl. 311-22) This invention relates generally to curb service trays, and particularly to such trays having reinforcing means to provide increased structural rigidity.

Curb service trays are conventionally supported in cantilever fashion upon the upper edge of an auto window glass and are provided with a diagonal brace which may engage the adjacent portion of the auto door.

The present invention provides a curb service tray which is constructed so as to obviate the need for a depending angular brace. The tray is particularly adapted to low-cost, mass production in that it is fabricated from a sheet of relatively thin, somewhat flexible thermosetting plastic.

The inherent flexibility of the tray is compensated for by providing support members, generally U-shaped in configuration, which extend across the under face of the tray in supporting relation to aligned cup-shaped wells, recesses or depressions formed in the tray. The supporting members are riveted to the tray adjacent their extremities, and are reversely bent to provide auto window engaging hooks.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide a curb service tray which may be fabricated from a somewhat flexible material, but which is given the required rigidity by supporting members along the under face of the tray.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a tray of the type referred to above in which the means for supporting the tray upon an auto window and the tray supporting or reinforcing members are integrally formed.

The full nature of the invention will be understood from the accompanying drawings and the following description and claims:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view of a tray embodying the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken generally along the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings, a tray is shown which is generally rectangular in outline having a flat border and a downwardly inclined margin 11. The central service area or base 12 of the tray is offset downwardly from the border and has formed therein the aligned series of cup-shaped depressions 13 adapted to accommodate containers, such as drinking cups or glasses.

The tray is preferably fabricated from a relatively thin sheet of thermosetting plastic. This material, while being relatively low in cost and easily' shaped and formed, is somewhat flexible and must be supported or braced to obtain the desired rigidity. The means for supporting and bracing the tray consists of steel bars or strips 14 which, as may best be seen in Fig. 2, are generally U-shaped in cross section and span each of the series of cup-shaped depressions, extending in supporting relation thereto.

' Patented Mar. 31, 1959 At one end the bars ,are bent vertically upward to provide a generally horizontal portion 16 rigidly secured to the under side of the border area by means of rivets 17. The terminal portion of this end of each bar is re versely bent to provide an inwardly inclined portion 18.

The other end of each of the bars is bent angularly back upon itself and extends upwardly to provide the horizontal potion 19 which is also secured to the border by rivets 17. The terminal portion 21 of the bar is formed so as to extend downwardly in a direction somewhat oblique to the adjacent inclined section of the bar.

In service, the tray may be supported on the upper edge of an auto window by means of the hooks formed by the depending portions 18 of the supporting bars, or, alternatively, may be supported by means of the inwardly inclined hooks formed by the depending portions 21. The difiering configurations of the supporting hooks formed at opposite ends of the bars permit accommodation of the tray in horizontally supported position upon auto windows having differing degrees of inclination.

In present day auto design, the auto windows are often mounted so as to have an inwardly oblique direction of extension from the auto body or doors. The configuration of the tray suporting hooks permits the tray to be supported in a generally horizontal position on either side of such inwardly inclined auto windows. The hook formed adjacent the portion 21 is used when it is desired that the tray extend inside the auto, and the hook formed at the portion 18 is used when the tray is to be supported on the outside of the auto.

From the foregoing, it will be evident that the curb service tray herein described may be economically fabricated of a relatively light plastic material given the required rigidity by supporting members which are so designed at their extremities as to provide alternate forms of tray supporting hooks.

While the invention has been disclosed and described in some detail in the drawings and foregoing description, they are to be considered as illustrative and not restictive in character, as other modifications may readily suggest themselves to persons skilled in this art and within the broad scope of the invention, reference being bad to the appended claims.

The invention claimed is:

1. A curb service tray adapted to be supported on an auto window and fabricated from a relatively thin plastic sheet, a plurality of series of aligned cup-shaped depressions formed in said tray to accommodate containers for comestibles to be transported on the tray, steel supporting bars spanning each of said series of depressions and contiguous with the under faces thereof, said bars being formed in generally U-shaped configuration and secured adjacent their extremities to said tray, the opposite terminal portions of said bars extending beyond said series of depressions being reversely bent to provide alternate forms of auto window engaging hooks for supporting the tray on either side of an auto window.

2. A curb service tray adapted to be supported on an auto window and fabricated from a relatively thin plastic sheet, two rows of aligned cup-shaped depressions formed in said tray to accommodate containers for comestibles to be transported on the tray, supporting bars spanning each of said rows of depressions and contiguous with the under faces thereof, said bars being secured adjacent their extremities to said tray, the opposite terminal portions of said bars extending beyond said series of depressions being reversely bent to provide alternate forms of auto window engaging books.

3. A curb service adapted to be supported on an auto 3 4 window, a plurality of series of aligned cup-shaped de- References Cited in the file of this patent pressionslforrned in said tray to accommodatecontainers for cornestibles to be transported on the tray, supporting UNITED STATES PATENTS bars spanning each of said series of depressions and con- 1,426,787 Spencer Aug. 22, 1922 tiguous with the under faces thereof, said bars being 5 1,358 Smyser Sept. 6, 1927 formed in generally U-shaped configuration and secured ,9 ,271 McGinley Nov. 7, 1933 adjacent their extremities to said tray, the terminalpor- 1,974,213 Gilbert Sept. 18, 1934 tions of said bars extending beyond said series of'de- ,01 ,7 5 Regli Sept. 17, 1935 pressions being reversely bent to provide auto window 2,818,316 Ziegler Apr. 19, 1938 engaging hooks. 10 2,818,316 DAndrade Dec. 31, 1957 

